Dave Pear's Blog

Report: NFL head injuries have led to drastic youth football participation decline

Feb 14, 2014

(USA Today Sports Images)

(view the helmet to helmet hit by these two very young football players in the video)!

Wake up NFL and provide restitution for “concealing” the dangers of head injuries. No more illusionary benefits or programs, studies, NFL Dr. “NO” Ira Casson or Elliot Pellman – a Long Island rheumatologist with no previous expertise in brain research.

For a number of years the NFL has wanted to expand outside of the U.S. Games in Canada, Mexico, and next year four in the U.K. Originally, they wanted to have more consumers for their games and licensed merchandise. Now, I think that they are looking for places to find future players.

I think that after watching the video of the two young boys going 1 on 1 and seeing the impact of the hit, it is about time we as former NFL players start to make public statements as to the impact that football can have on the lives of both the young and old. There has to be some factual research that shows a “safe” age as to when a youth should be able to start playing contact football. (if there is one at all)

My son played both youth football and HS football until the age of 16. He started playing contact football in the 6th grade. There wasn’t a day that went by when I wasn’t fearful of him being hit and being paralyzed. The thought of head trauma never entered my mind. Unfortunately, after his sophomore year in HS, he was diagnosed with a “Ewing’s Sarcoma” cancer that was found in the lower base of his skull. When the neurosurgeon told him that they would have to operate to remove the tumor from inside his skull, but he would never be able to play football again, I was both terrified about the cancer that was found, but quietly relieved that he would not be able to play contact football again. He is now 6 years cancer free and living a healthy life. With the tumor being found in his skull, was it head trauma that caused the tumor to grow in his skull? No doctor has ever told me no! I continue to research the issue.

Anyway, how much more proof do we need to show that head trauma can caused CTE? I really don’t think we need to sit around and wait for the NFL to acknowledge it. Do we turn our backs and do nothing while more and more kids needlessly die in grade school, high school, college and the NFL? What percentage of those that die, do we continue to tolerate and say that it is just part of the game?